Court acquits Panchkula resident in rape case

Sumit Kumar, a Pinjore resident, was acquitted of the charges of rape under Section 376 (2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)

A local court on Monday acquitted a Panchkula resident accused in a 2021 rape case due to lack of evidence and held that it is crystal clear that the case cannot be made out against him.

“It cannot be concluded that the prosecutrix engaged in a sexual relationship with the accused solely on account of any assurance of marriage from the accused. The relationship between the parties was cordial and also consensual in nature,” said the court. (HT Photo)

Sumit Kumar, a Pinjore resident, was acquitted of the charges of rape under Section 376 (2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

As per the prosecution, the IT Park police station had registered a case against Kumar on the complaint of a 35-year-old woman in 2021. According to the complaint, she had met the accused in 2010. They later got into a physical relationship in August 2013, which continued till 2021. The woman, however, lodged the complaint after Kumar had refused to marry her. Kumar was arrested in July 2021 and charges were framed against him in November 2021.

“It cannot be concluded that the prosecutrix engaged in a sexual relationship with the accused solely on account of any assurance of marriage from the accused. The relationship between the parties was cordial and also consensual in nature,” said the court.

The court added that what was a consensual relationship between the parties during the initial stages cannot be given a colour of criminality when the said relationship does not fructify into a marital relationship. Now both the parties are married to someone else and have moved on in their respective lives, observed the court.

The court also observed that it is very difficult to assume that the prosecutrix, who is aged about 35 years, otherwise a mature person, was unable to discover the ‘deceitful’ behaviour of the accused who continued to have sexual relationship with her for such a long period with the promise of marriage. Any such mendacious act of the accused would have been exposed sooner without having to wait for such a long time, it stated.

“The inference one can drawn under the circumstances is that there was no such false promise made to the prosecutrix by the accused of marriage by continuing to have physical relationship so as to bring this act within the province of Section 376 IPC and therefore, there was no vitiation of consent under misconception of fact,” said the court.